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Ruth Umoh

Ruth Umoh

Fortune

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What Airbnb’s CFO learned when the pandemic made trust a balance sheet decision

When the pandemic upended Airbnb’s business, it made an expensive bet that protecting trust would matter more than preserving near-term margins.

16.03.2026 5

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

Meet the executive behind AT&T’s $250 billion bid to become essential AI infrastructure

Jeff McElfresh is overseeing AT&T’s $250 billion effort to become an essential connectivity platform for the AI economy.

13.03.2026 4

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

From brand builder to business operator. The unconventional career blueprint behind one executive’s C-suite rise

The executives who reach the C-suite fastest are often the ones willing to step off the obvious path.

02.03.2026 30

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

Inside a $280 billion tobacco giant’s push to turn smokers into smoke-free customers

Philip Morris International says its future is smoke free. Getting there requires turning cigarette smokers into new customers.

24.02.2026 10

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

What Amazon’s Fortune 500 rise teaches about experimenting beyond the core business

Amazon didn’t overtake Walmart by winning retail alone.

23.02.2026 3

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

CEO hopefuls have a new rival for the top job: their own board directors

Internal candidates are increasingly up against their own directors in the CEO succession race.

18.02.2026 10

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

Companies are cycling through CEOs—and replacing them with first-timers

The year of the rookie CEO has arrived.

17.02.2026 20

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

Why GM’s supply chain chief sees suppressed dissent as a business risk

At GM, debate Is a risk management tool, says its supply chain chief.

11.02.2026 4

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

Disney’s $27 million retention deal pays its No. 2 a higher base salary than her boss

The pay strategy shows how Disney is managing a potential flight risk.

09.02.2026 6

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

How Pfizer’s CEO wielded moral clarity to help his team do the impossible

The pharma company had to scale vaccine production from 200 million annually to 3 billion at the pandemic's peak.

02.02.2026 6

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

Why the AI boom is forcing a rethink of career success

As AI expands, some argue that hands-on jobs once overlooked may gain new importance. That could challenge long-held ideas about career ascensions.

26.01.2026 10

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

The quiet erosion of HR’s power

HR seems to be losing jurisdiction over the workforce in the age of AI.

26.01.2026 10

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

Jamie Dimon says government should have power to intervene in AI-driven mass layoffs

Companies are favoring experienced consultants over permanent roles as judgment becomes more valuable than execution.

26.01.2026 20

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

The rise of on-demand leadership in the AI economy

Companies are favoring experienced consultants over permanent roles as judgment becomes more valuable than execution.

22.01.2026 10

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

How a series of calculated risks led a BNY executive to the C-suite of America’s oldest bank

In a CEO search, small moments can end a candidacy instantly.

17.01.2026 7

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

How luxury homebuilding giant Toll Brothers took the drama out of CEO succession

The Fortune 500 company offers a masterclass in CEO hand-offs.

12.01.2026 6

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

If entry-level jobs disappear, who becomes a CEO?

As AI takes over early career work, companies are rethinking how leaders are made.

05.01.2026 10

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

For CEOs, the path to the top is still internal

Despite high-profile external hires, most top executives are promoted from within, especially in the corner office.

22.12.2025 5

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

What the 25 most powerful rising executives reveal about tomorrow’s CEO playbook

Their influence and momentum offer a window into the future Fortune 500 corner office.

16.12.2025 10

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

The science of failing up: Why some leaders rise despite repeated screwups

Inside corporate America’s hidden mechanics that allow executives to fail upward.

08.12.2025 20

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

How Campbell’s leaked audio turned a pantry staple into a PR crisis

Campbell’s holiday-season leak exposes how one executive’s misjudgment can reshape culture, trust, and the risks leaders create in private.

01.12.2025 20

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

How Xbox is turning its loudest fans into a roadmap for its biggest transformation yet

Xbox is shifting from console-first to a play-anywhere future, and its president, Sarah Bond, is relying on its passionate player base to chart the...

29.11.2025 10

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

Why 90% of decisions don’t reach this Land O’Lakes exec’s desk

Land O’Lakes’ Leah Anderson avoids the trap of endless analysis by asking one question: Will more information change the outcome or just make you...

24.11.2025 10

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

Meet the Land O’Lakes exec bringing AI to the heart of American farming

Land O’Lakes’ Leah Anderson is bringing automation and algorithms to agriculture.

24.11.2025 10

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

Why John Furner is the CEO Walmart thinks it needs right now

Walmart’s next CEO will have to prove that an old-school retailer can think like a tech firm without losing its soul.

17.11.2025 10

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

Does international experience still matter for future CEOs?

Once a ticket to the top, global stints are being redefined in an era of AI, protectionism, and regional markets.

10.11.2025 10

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

As AI accelerates decision-making, top executives are doubling down on a slower skill 

From Mark Zuckerberg to Jamie Dimon, C-suite execs swear by daily deep, focused reading.

03.11.2025 9

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

What big companies get wrong about innovation, according to an IBM insider

IBM’s top software leader says large organizations fail to innovate because they don’t iterate.

31.10.2025 9

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

From trading floors to streaming wars: Grindr’s ex-CFO on taking career risks at the right time

From Wall Street, to streaming, to social tech, Vanna Krantz says her biggest career wins came from trusting her instincts and knowing when to jump.

25.10.2025 6

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

How Wells Fargo’s CEO turned one of the hardest transformation jobs into a leadership blueprint

Charlie Scharf rebuilt a broken bank using clear accountability and a refusal to chase flash over fundamentals.

20.10.2025 10

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

Meet the Resy CMO using data to shape your next great meal

Resy is pursuing a marketing strategy that turns restaurant data into cultural currency.

17.10.2025 7

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

The search for corporate America’s next Fortune 500 CEOs

Fortune is now accepting nominations for the 2025 Next to Lead list, recognizing executives who will shape the next era of business.

13.10.2025 10

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

How AWS’s CMO plans to turn marketing into a measurable revenue engine

Amazon Web Services's CMO says marketing isn't a support function but is instead tied to revenue targets and product strategy.

06.10.2025 6

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

What happens when C-suite pay becomes all or nothing

Inside the new era of high-stakes compensation that rewards only those who deliver outsize success.

06.10.2025 7

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

The consulting giant that creates more Fortune 500 chiefs than anyone else

Also: All the news and watercooler chat from Fortune.

01.10.2025 10

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

Want to be CEO? These 5 employers give you the best shot

These five companies have produced the most current Fortune 500 CEOs. McKinsey tops the list.

29.09.2025 8

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

Why cognitive empathy is the secret weapon that sharpens executive decision-making

Progressive CEO Tricia Griffith argues that some paranoia is a leadership strength, not a flaw.

22.09.2025 7

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

How an openness to risk positioned one executive to ride the biggest wealth wave in history

Trillions are changing hands over the next two decades, and her new approach to risk aims to win the advisors and clients of the future.

22.09.2025 7

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

Why ServiceNow’s CFO says the fastest way up is to hire your successor

ServiceNow’s CFO Gina Mastantuono reveals the standout talent lesson she learned from Uber’s chief executive.

16.09.2025 6

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

Why ServiceNow’s CFO says the fastest way up is to hire your successor

ServiceNow’s CFO Gina Mastantuono reveals the standout talent lesson she learned from Uber’s chief executive.

15.09.2025 7

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

Progressive’s CEO on how paranoia and a ‘surgical focus’ grew the insurer into a $75B giant

Progressive CEO Tricia Griffith argues that some paranoia is a leadership strength, not a flaw.

08.09.2025 20

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

Red Lobster’s CEO on weighing the risks and rewards of a turnaround role

Red Lobster chief Damola Adamolekun explains the career calculus behind saying yes to leading companies in crisis.

25.08.2025 10

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

Target’s CEO succession tilts toward an insider and company lifer

Target appears to have its next CEO waiting in the wings.

18.08.2025 6

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

The rise (and risks) of interim CEO roles

More leaders are stepping into the corner office temporarily. But the gig doesn’t always pay off.

11.08.2025 10

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

Flex’s CEO took the job without industry experience. One battle-tested playbook guided every move

Flex’s CEO didn’t pretend to know the business when she assumed the corner office. Instead, she stuck to what she could control.

28.07.2025 10

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

Why writing off Apple’s Tim Cook could be a classic CEO succession mistake

Apple’s Tim Cook is facing the similar premature doubts that Goldman’s David Solomon battled.

21.07.2025 10

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

Linda Yaccarino’s exit from X is a warning shot for any executive eyeing the corner office

The former X CEO is a cautionary tale of why chasing prestige can destroy the reputation that got you there.

14.07.2025 6

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

The hidden career cost of having a powerful professional network

Executives often believe that proximity to greatness is a career accelerator, but new research shows high-profile connections can hinder long-term...

07.07.2025 10

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

What Bank of America’s CEO values most when hiring his inner circle

Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan shares his playbook for lasting leadership.

30.06.2025 10

Fortune

Ruth Umoh

Serena Williams has backed 14 unicorns so far. Now she’s adding a new role to prove hygiene and health can be big business

The tennis champion is taking her investing experience beyond her firm Serena Ventures.

26.06.2025 10

Fortune

Ruth Umoh